Rangers News

Rangers Daily Prospect Update: Jan. 5, 2007

The Hartford Wolf Pack, the Rangers' American Hockey League affiliate, lost to the Manchester Monarchs 3-2 in overtime on Friday night at the Hartford Civic Center. After falling behind 1-0 on a power play late in the first period, the Pack fought back for the tie when defenseman Daniel Girardi scored his first goal of the season at 7:00 of the second period off assists from Dane Byers and Brandon Dubinsky. Manchester, the top team in the Eastern Conference's Atlantic Division, took a 2-1 lead on a shorthanded goal just two minutes after Girardi scored. The Wolf Pack came back again for the tie when Byers, the game's No. 2 star, notched his eighth of the season on a power play at 12:54 of the third period. Rookie Ryan Callahan, the team's leading scorer, and defenseman Ivan Baranka picked up assists on the Byers goal. Manchester went on to win the game when Lauri Tukonen scored at 1:55 of overtime. Hartford goaltender Al Montoya, the AHL's most recent Player of the Week, made 20 saves in defeat. Although the Pack didn't win, they managed to pick up at least one point in the standings for the third straight game. Hartford is now 17-16-3 on the season and only two points out of third place in the Atlantic Division. For more information, visit the Wolf Pack's official site.

The Charlotte Checkers, the Rangers' East Coast Hockey League affiliate, fell to the Florida Everblades 9-7 in a wild game on Friday night in Estero, Fla. The Checkers had trailed the Everblades 7-3 late in the second period before storming back with four straight goals to tie the game at 7-7 with just 8:10 left in regulation. Florida got the game-winner at 15:09 of the third period and added a shorthanded goal to ice it. Among Rangers prospects, Zdenek Bahensky was the first to crack the scoresheet when he picked up the second assist on the first of No. 2 star Blake Bellefeuille's four goals. Bahensky's assist came at 12:53 of the second, cutting Florida's lead at the time to 4-2. Hugh Jessiman also got into the scoring with the second assist on Mike Ouellette's goal at 9:52 of the third period, making it a 7-5 game. Rangers goaltending prospect Chris Holt started the final period in relief of Alex Westlund and finished with five saves. The Checkers are now 17-14-1 and in fifth place in the American Conference's South Division. For more information, visit the Checkers' official site.

In addition, 14 Rangers prospects competed in regular-season games in the CHL, QMJHL, OHL, WHL, NCAA and Europe on Friday. Here is a summary of their performances:

Hillier, the game's No. 1 star, played a big role in the Mooseheads' storming back from an early 3-0 deficit for a 6-4 win, notching three points, including the game-winning goal. He helped get Halifax's offense going with the second assist on Peter-James Corsi's power-play goal at 11:48 of the first period, cutting the Wildcats' lead to 3-1. He later picked up the primary assist on Bryce Swan's goal at 16:33 of the second period, tying the game at 3-3. Hillier saved his best for last, scoring the game-winner with 6:26 remaining in the third period. He also led Halifax with seven shots on goal and took one minor penalty in the second period.

It was a big, multi-point night for the defenseman Koverko, who established a new career-high in assists. He started off with the primary assist on the Generals' first goal, scored by John Tavares at 12:44 of the first period. That goal pulled Oshawa into a 1-1 tie. Koverko later added the second assist on Cal Clutterbuck's game-tying goal with 1:01 remaining in the third period, forcing the overtime that Tavares decided after just eight seconds of play. Koverko also took one minor penalty in the opening period and finished the game with a plus-1 rating. His 13 assists are a new career-high in major junior, and he has also tied his career scoring high with 13 points this season.

Olver opened the scoring for the Wildcats with a power-play goal at 4:55 of the first period, pulling NMU into a 1-1 tie. Olver also took a minor penalty in the game's first period and finished the night with a plus-1 rating.

Kozak did not score any points or take any penalties in the RiverKings' win on the road. He also tied for the team lead with three shots on goal. Memphis built up a 4-0 lead late in the second period and survived the Blazers' third-period comeback bid by closing out the game with an empty-net goal.(NOTE: Kozak's 2006-07 ECHL stats with Charlotte: 11 games, 3 goals, 2 assists, 41 PIM)

Kveton missed the game because he had not yet returned from representing the Czech Republic at the World Junior Championships.(NOTE: Kveton's 2006-07 QMJHL stats with Gatineau: 5 games, 0 goals, 5 assists, 2 PIM)